Talk about getting it perfect right before moving on to the next new thing. This 1993 Mustang SVT Cobra might be the epitome of that practice (which is something more the habit of GM than of Ford). It’s for sale here on ebay for a buy-it-now asking price of $40,000. Relax if you’re thinking about doing it. This one has more than a week to go in the listing. Should you come up with the scratch, you can pick it up in Centerville, Indiana.
This car is so tasty that it almost upstaged the car that followed it—the retro-style redesign that was the 1994 Mustang. Horsepower was 235, powerful for the day but approximately half of what a newer Mustang now offers, and in fact, a bit in dispute. The number was probably more realistically 270hp, according to sources. 4993 were produced in this, the only year for the Cobra in this body style. Color choices were Black, two shades of red, Vibrant Red Clearcoat and Vibrant Red, and Teal Metallic. Body enhancements included a unique rear spoiler and rocker moldings and 17-inch wheels featuring a swirl pattern of the spokes, amongst other things. Add to that the coiled cobra fender badges, and you have a car with menace combined with uniqueness.
This one isn’t exactly low-mileage, at more than 44K over four owners. And it’s a bit disappointing to see that it’s been a little bit messed with in the form of a litany of work done by at least two owners, including the present one. The list includes JBA headers and AFR cylinder heads. That plus a chip and precision tuning have the car running, to use the cliché the seller uses, “like a scalded dog,” but I don’t want my SVT Cobra to run like that. I want it to run like Ford made it. Sorry. I love original stuff, and the folks at the SVT skunkworks had already been over this car plenty, including a revised cam and GT40 heads.
So should you grab this Mustang? You’d have a handsome car for sure, and a collectible. But you’re probably getting to the top of the value scale on this one for the miles used. The market right now has cars available, priced in the mid-$50K range to mid-$60K for vehicles with under 15,000 miles. You could look at that the other way, though, and say that living with a higher mileage figure is saving you more than ten thousand bucks. And for what it’s worth, the provided AutoCheck ratings number on the car is in the positive range for its year and type, so there’s probably not a lot of risk here, with even the potential for an upside if you keep this pony for a while.
The emotion surrounding these is amazing. Compare the price of this to a 1994 model.
GM gets it right, then kills off the model. Ford then refined the Fox body into the SN95, and beyond.
“..$44k mileage..” Editor on break?
I think Brian K has properly analyzed this car and its market. The high dollar examples are low mileage and unmodified. In general as the miles go up the value goes down, which is completely normal. But also, as the mods go up, it appears the value also goes down. I guess there are those for whom the mods do provide desirability, that is who this seller is looking for. That all said, I think this example with its middling miles and many mods, is priced at the high end of the market. Still a desirable car.
You would hope that the GT40 heads were still available with car